United Food Bank Names New President and CEO
The board of directors of local nonprofit United Food Bank announced Jason Reed as the organization’s new president and CEO. Reed assumed his new role on Feb. 27, after a nationwide selection process.
“Jason brings a wonderful mix of traditional food banking leadership, strategic and innovative thinking, as well as a personal passion for community service that will help take United Food Bank and Waste Not to the next level in providing and rescuing food for Arizona’s food insecure,” said Cathy Chlarson, board chair.
Reed brings nearly 20 years of proven executive and community leadership to the role. Most recently, he served as chief innovation officer of St. Vincent de Paul of Arizona and was a member of its executive team since 2019. Previously, he was head of strategy for Second Harvest Heartland food bank in Minnesota, where he founded and led several statewide hunger-relief initiatives. Before joining the nonprofit sector, Reed was a corporate strategist for Fortune 500 food manufacturing and healthcare companies at consultancy McCann Worldgroup, and previously with Ogilvy New York.
Reed also serves as chair of the board of directors for Adelante Healthcare, a community healthcare system that serves more than 80,000 patients across Maricopa County. Reed holds a master’s degree from Harvard University and an undergraduate degree from the University of Minnesota. He has been honored globally as a Fellow by The Aspen Institute in philanthropy and social innovation, and nationally as a NextGen Fellow by Independent Sector.
Reed is the son of an immigrant from South Korea and has witnessed firsthand the power that food and nutrition can have on the lives of families experiencing hunger.
“Food is more than just a meal on a plate. Food is meant to be shared with others, and with our terrific community partners, we can strengthen the many ways we share these resources to break the cycle of hunger in our communities,” Reed said. “It’s hard to imagine a better role than one focused on guiding the mission of uniting communities to alleviate hunger.”
For more behind this Frontdoor, visit UnitedFoodBank.org.
